5 of the best bank holiday weekend games

Wield your cybernetic enhancements in a shower of explosions and mayhem or take the stealthy route and deal out death from the shadows in this long awaited prequel – either option results in a glorious mix of action, adventure, puzzle solving and role-play. Check out our review here before biting the bullet, although this is a no-brainer if we've ever seen one.

Few fighting games featured a learning curve as steep as the third iteration in the Street Fighter series but its quality as an exceptionally frantic and skilled button masher is still present in this modern-day arcade update. Capcom has ensured that the online experience is a lag-free affair so there are no excuses for pathetic performances.

For most of us, the chance to run our very own tropical island government is about as slim as Bill Gates being the next CEO of Apple. Tropico 4 hopes to offer mere mortals a chance to grab the reigns of an island paradise that awaits your tyrannical/benevolent dictatorship. Whether you rule with an iron fist or embrace your subjects in diplomacy is entirely up to you.

Age of Empires Online is an updated version of the classic real-time strategy game that pits you against ancient civilisations in a bid to conquer the continents with your mighty armies. This shiny new adaptation is free to download and play, although be wary of micro-transactions full of extra civilisations and items which can stealthily empty your coffers.

If your index fingers have been thoroughly decimated from hours of virtual fruit slicing then you’ll be glad to hear that the rest of your body can finally offer them a respite. The Kinect version places your hands on the front lines where hacking and slashing your way up the leaderboards will become an overpowering obsession – you’ll be as buff as Arnie by Tuesday morning.